It is funny to see how tastes can differ. But I believe that any movie/music/work of art can be entertaining when certain conditions are met in life of the observer. I guess this is why I enjoyed FN2 remake over FN remake. Not a fan of unnecessary nudity, so no nude Jaime is a plus for me. Liked jokes in FN2 more and first half was more enthralling as well. The only thing I would agree with is camera work - episode with lights flashing sucked.
Fair enough, it's good you liked it but I'm really struggling to see anything I enjoyed about it. I'm definitely not that hard to please when it comes to horror movies but I found FN2 so dry. I don't even think I noticed any jokes until
Ed attacking Peter Vincent in the bathroom. That chest cam was pretty funny.
I don't even know if I'd say nudity from Jaime would be unnecessary, at least for the plot. She was portrayed as a succubus and spent a great deal of the movie without a stitch of clothing on. Them clumsily filming around her body was far more distracting than any nudity would have been. And it's not like they were shy about showing naked women. They had no problem with showing a
naked old woman and her victim.
That scene was the very definition of gratuitous.
I could complain about the plot, pacing and editing for hours, but I think the scene where Gerri catches Charley peepin' and he runs off-screen and then instantly appears outside already on the phone in the next shot just shows how lazy this one was. They couldn't even bother having an insert of him running out a door or down a hallway first?
Wasted potential (I seem to be throwing that around a lot this year) really bothers me and that totally describes FN2 for me. I really wanted to like this one because the other 3 FN movies are so fun, but they totally dropped the ball.
1. Cube - I had to fix the fact that I had seen Hypercube and Cube Zero before actually having seen the original. I wasn't disappointed. It's obvious what films have drawn inspiration from Cube since its release in the 90s. The black guy is wonderfully douchey, and I'm love him for it. 4 out of 5
2. The Conjuring - Competent and effective, but that's about as far as I'm willing to go with my praise. 3 out of 5
3. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978) - One of the few films that manages to go toe to toe with its predecessor and come out on top IMO. While it's not quite as big a leap from the original film as John Carpenter's The Thing was, the leap was substantial none the less. Absolutely loved the practical effects. The ending obviously won't surprise you anymore, especially if you frequent the internet, but that by no means hampers the experience. 5 out of 5
4. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (Original) - Simple yet effective narrative, and basically one that most modern slashers adhere to (alongside constructing hateable characters for the sole purpose of making their deaths not only stomachable, but thoroughly enjoyable - ie. Franklin). Easily one of the noteworthy entries in low-budget horror making. The cinematography is what really makes this film great. The 16mm allows for a wonderfully grainy look, and there's a great balance between bleak grit and vibrant color. People who go back to watch this film with a modern mindset, especially after the remakes, will probably be surprised that the film is pretty tame in that regard, choosing to leave much to the mind. 4.5 out of 5
5. Haunter - Pretty interesting concept. It's almost a hodgepodge of Nightmare on Elm Street and Groundhogs Day with a Ghost story overcoat. It starts off interesting enough and manages to hold your attention for a while, but it overstays its welcome a bit and the ending was too hokey for my liking. I was expecting a bit more from Vincenzo Natali. 2 out of 5
6. Susperia - Similar to a lot of Giallo films, the narrative isn't exactly conventional or deep (although I'd consider that a charm of the genre), but an awesome score and downright gorgeous cinematography elevate the film into something truly great. 5 out of 5
7. Black Christmas (Original) - Such an awesome movie to watch as a fan of the genre. You can see the past and future of the genre within this one film. It's very much a blurred region between Giallo and the modern Slasher. The film in general is quality to boot. 5 out of 5
8. The Beyond - The narrative doesn't make a lick of sense but the movie manages to impress regardless. 4 out of 5
9. The Loved Ones - Surprisingly decent film. The pit scenes were legitimately creepy. 3.5 out of 5
10. Curse of Chucky - I actually quite liked Bride of Chucky and Seed of Chucky, so the return to a less outlandish Chucky movie didn't go over to well with me. It wasn't a terrible film, it just lacked a soul IMO. The definition of generic. 2 out of 5
11. Session 9 - I've seen this film mentioned countless time, and its name is typically followed by glowing praise. I wasn't a fan to say the least. I loved the crawling narrative, which helped create steadily growing tension, but I was expecting a bigger payoff. The tail end of the 3rd act was just too sudden and not grand enough to justify the 80+ minutes of slow build up proceeding it. Such a shame too, because I'm usually a sucker for psychological horror. 2 out of 5
12. Society - Dat ending. Fairly heavy handed messaging, but I'm a huge fan of body horror and a sucker for films focusing on the snobiness of the 80s/90s Elite. 4.5 out of 5
13. The Hitcher (Original) - Rutger Hauer is explanation enough. 4.5 out of 5
14. Demons - Why is there a motorcycle in the movie theater, and better yet, why does it have gas? You could probably ask a dozen or so mind boggling questions like this, but it doesn't matter because Demons is awesome despite its narrative and consistency shortfalls. 4.5 out of 5
15. Angel Heart - I'm not completely sure why I always see this listed under the horror genre. It's more film noir with some psychological horror thrown in, but the horror elements are so spare and far and few between that I kind of struggle labeling it as such. Regardless, it's a damn good movie and Lisa Bonet was gorgeous in it. It also brings to light how horribly Mickey Rourke fucked his face up. Great actor though. 4.5 out 5
I've only been able to watch two movies since my last update. Between the Vertigo, diagnosis of a tumor (benign!) in my ear and surgery to remove it yesterday, I haven't had much time to watch movies. The movies I did manage to watch are:
16. Return of the Living Dead - Awesome practical effects and it easily houses one of my favorite depictions of Zombies in a film. And definitely appreciate the sheer eightiesness of the movie. 5 out of 5
17. The Burning - Par for the course as far as slashers within that era are concerned, but it's great none the less. Deliberate pacing is something that's definitely been lost within recent slashers and the horror genre in general, and sometimes less is more, which is a quality I definitely liked about the film. It's definitely one of those limbo films trapped between Giallo and the modern slasher, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. 3.5 out of 5
I'm probably only going to get to 20 or so movies by the end of today, so I'm not going to make it to 31. I'll probably be watching horror films for the next week or so though, especially since I'm excited to see the remaining films on my list.
Well work is being a dick today and I'm not going to get home till late, happy fucking Halloween bah.
Anyways watched one more movie so this year it looks like 35 films only for me.
#35 Street Trash (1987)
I'm in a pissy mood so my review:
I started watching Frankenstein's army and was digging it, but wont get to finish it. Was probably gonna marathon a bunch of good shit tonight too but work is screwing that idea. Oh well.
A rewatch of Candyman will be my finale tonight. Hopefully I'll get home in time, I got stuck giving out candy at my sister's place while they take the kids out.
I'm excited to see it again, I haven't watched it since it was new and have been saving it since some reviews last year reminded me to check it out.
Horror is personal. Even if characters are battered by cosmic powers beyond mortal control or understanding, like in movies like In the Mouth of Madness, Event Horizon, or Hellraiser, the story is focused on one character. I can't think of a horror movie that's structured like an epic, where we follow multiple characters at different parts of the story as they try to make sense of the pieces of the larger horrific mystery before them. That's why I was originally excited about the idea of a movie based on World War Z: the oral history/anecdotal anthology approach seemed perfect to set up a horror epic. Instead, that structure seemed untenable, so they boiled it down to one character having a globe-trotting adventure. It's funny that of the movies I've watched this year, a PG-13 horror movie like The Hole and Faust, a silent movie from 1926, might have the largest scope.
This year, it seems like the majority of the movies I watched are based on our fears of what we cannot see, like ghosts (House on Haunted Hill, Paranormal Activity 3, Ju-on: The Grudge, The Innkeepers), creatures that live in the outskirts of our world (Mama, Mimic), the environment (Antarctic Journal, The Bay, The Stuff) and other people (Megan Is Missing, The Girl Next Door, Bay of Blood, The Snowtown Murders, Severance, Come Out and Play, Cold Sweat, Carrie, Cropsey). One movie drew its fear from the stars (Killer Klowns from Outer Space), but it's a bit of a joke. Fire in the Sky, on the other hand, builds on the more recent fear of alien abductions by Grays, aliens with big heads, slim bodies, and a appetite for probing us violently and thoroughly. It combines the fear of alien abductions with the fear of hospitals and medical procedures in its classic abduction and probing scene.
James Garner lends a hint of class to the film, which stars Robert Patrick and D.B. Sweeney, who reminded me enough of Paul Rudd that I wondered if we could remake this film today with Rudd as the star. The film, as a whole, is a bit boring, but the abduction/probing scene that Sweeney has to carry near the end of the film makes the entire effort worthwhile. The ship feels lived in, and the aliens provide project just enough feeling and menace through their innate alienness that the scene feels real for the film's universe. I was left wanting more time in the ship with Sweeney's character and the aliens, but this was probably limited by the fact that the film is based on a real story.
Ok guys. Don't think I'll be squeezing in any more before October runs out. My goal was to at least double my amount from last year, which I done, exactly. So I'm happy. =D
Here's my final tally, along with last years. Last year, I only watched one movie I'd seen before and this year, every single film I watched was new to me. I had a blast finally getting around to the Elm Street series and I particularly liked the first, third and seventh instalments. I'll maybe do a better wrap up for the 2013 films in a day or so, including reviews.
Had a blast posting with you guys and hope you all enjoyed the month of horror, as much as I did.
#29 - Kill, Baby... Kill! (1966)
Discovering Italian director Bava was one of the highlights of this years marathon for me personally, and the winning streak continues with Kill, Baby... Kill! as it is another film I liked. It has some giallo influences, but is mostly a Gothic ghost story about a small village where coins are found in the hearts of the recently deceased and a doctor must find out the truth behind it all. There seems to be a deep and rich history behind the little town with talk of the occult, curses and a genuine feel of authenticity, as the mystery surrounding it makes it all that more interesting. It seems my keyword for describing Bava films is often 'atmosphere' and once again it's one of the strong suits of this film as well. I loved the sets, from the narrow streets in the village to the big spooky mansion. The little girl pictured above also did a pretty good job being creepy. 7/10
#30 - Onibaba (1964)
Surprisingly non-horror, or at least the inhumane horrific events that the film revolves around are disguised and treated in a way they don't seem horrific, that is.. up until the last act when karma shows up. Thematically very strong, featuring incredible cinematography in the scenes that take place in the dark fields while the rain is pouring, absolutely gorgeous. The finale is amazing as well and I kind of want a mask like that to scare the living hell out of people. 7/10
I've been too busy with work or too lazy to post updates on a movie-by-movie basis, so I'm dumping it all out now in rough order of viewing. This month the bulk of my horror marathon has just been random stuff on AMC's Fear Fest or on Comcast On Demand, once I got past a few modern films at beginning. I don't think I can write an essay for each film, so it's just going to be some basic impressions.
(Ratings are based on my personal feelings toward each film rather than an objective measure of quality. It should be noted that I apply low standards to horror movies. If it isn't outright garbage, I probably enjoyed it.)
1. Paranormal Activity 2 (2010): 7/10. A few years back my brother insisted that we watch the original Paranormal Activity because he had seen it in theaters and, according to him, it looked like it took place in our old home. The familiarity was what disturbed him about it. When I saw the movie, I completely disagreed. This wasn't our old house, it just had similar kitchen cabinets! But I enjoyed PA1 well enough nonetheless. Enter Paranormal Activity 2. My biggest problem with the film is that all begins to develop a sort of Paranormal Activity Lore, which didn't bode well for future. Overall, however, the film was decent and I started to appreciate how unsettling it can be to watch PAs late at night in total darkness.
2. Paranormal Activity 3 (2011): 9/10. The clear favorite of the Paranormal Activity series, to me at least. The setting is great, the family here is a much better subject for making this kind of material scary, and the children's room is genuinely evocative of the kind of fear you experienced as a child (if you were anything like me). You know, the kind of fear you've entirely made up on your own because your house had some kind of creepy room or storage area that you made yourself off limits to. This film gets that kind of fear and makes it real.
3. Paranormal Activity 4 (2012): 6/10 I had heard bad things about PA4, but I enjoyed it well enough. Before this all started I was the biggest Paranormal Activity skeptic out there, and look at me now! Obviously still the lowest of the series. The
Xbox
stuff is so bad it's hilarious.
4. Sinister (2012): 8.5/10. A very good horror film marred by a poor ending and a few goofy-looking
ghost
scenes. Sinister does an amazing job of constructing each aspect of the home [and the living situation] as a force of horror, aided by a great performance from Ethan Hawke. As Hawke's character goes deeper into his subject, the film builds incredible tension which it releases in effective bursts. Unfortunately, the attempts at misdirection are mostly unsuccessful and the ending becomes all too predictable.
5. Grave Encounters 2 (2012): 6/10. I wouldn't say it was bad. In fact it does plenty right, but shouldn't be watched too soon after you've seen the original Grave Encounters due to it covering much of the same ground. For reference, I'd give the original film about an 7.5/10.
6. House of the Devil (2009): 7/10. The kind of throwback horror film I had long been waiting for, even if it's not perfect. Much of the runtime maintains a strong atmosphere without at all coming off as parody of 70s/80s horror. It's a shame that the attic scenes falter and look like a cheap modern film, since otherwise it's a very cohesive and pleasing experience.
7. Cujo (1983): 3/10. Not much of interest here. The scary dog gimmick it relies on isn't very effective in the year 2013. Dee Wallace looked smokin' though.
8. Silver Bullet (1985): 5.5/10. I had never seen nor heard of this film before, so it was an unexpected little pleasure. Nothing amazing, but fun in a way that only the 80's could provide.
9. The Tunnel (2011): 6/10. Australian found footage horror. Better than I expected. By the very nature of its presentation you can guess much of which will eventually happen, but the location keeps you engaged.
10. Candyman 2, Farewell to the Flesh (1995): 5/10. I was surprised by how good the original was, and knew the sequel wouldn't live up to it. The sequel isn't completely terrible, it just has no bite to it. The New Orleans setting is a positive, and contributes to giving the film a good look if nothing else. The lead actress is competent enough but doesn't elevate the material. You can tell who has and who doesn't have plot armor, which prevents any sort of tension from mounting.
11. Halloween 1 (1978) [Rewatch]: 9/10. It still lives up its reputation three and a half decades later. Not much I can say about this movie that hasn't been said a million times.
12. Halloween 2 (1981) [Rewatch]: 7.5/10. The follow-up to Halloween features enough well-constructed scares to keep the series afloat despite beginning the tradition of repeating and rehashing the same Myersian tropes over and over again.
13. Halloween 3 (1982) [Rewatch]: 8/10. A great movie in its own right. I can imagine that there have been more than a few people who consider it a rip off based on having no continuity with the rest of the Halloween series. But it's got all the 80s nostalgia you could ask for, and does a tremendous job of slowly building up tension. The final act is thrilling and truly horrifying once the real horror of what's at stake starts to set in. The desperation in the final scene, working with the infectious and insidious commercial theme, is one of my personal favorite moments in horror.
14. Halloween 4 (1988) [Rewatch]: 7/10. The series attempts to return to form, and it's successful enough. While not the greatest child actor, little Danielle Harris is kind of totally adorable, so putting her is danger is a fairly effective way of drawing audience sympathy. The good news is that the total package is alright. The bad news is that every Halloween movie after (with the slight exception of H20) is the exact same movie. Good ending though.
15. Halloween 5 (1989) [Rewatch]: 5/10. Halloween 5 has a bad reputation from what I gather. Much of that is deserved, but for my money the series doesn't fall off a cliff here as some people say. It's just not remarkable.
16. Halloween 6 (1995) [Rewatch]: 4/10. Paul Rudd, horror movie action hero? Is such a thing even possible? Maybe it shouldn't have been. Okay, it's not that bad, and Halloween 6 isn't embarrassing or anything, it's just more of the same. The ending is genuinely disturbing though. Not because of the film on its own but because it features the
rather pointless death of Dr. Loomis
followed immediately by a message stating RIP DONALD PLEASANCE. It just feels.. sad. If I had seen it in the theaters I might have felt offended.
17. Graveyard Shift (1990): 3/10. One of the weaker films I've seen this month, but it has an interesting early 90's aesthetic which kept my interest. The monster itself is dumb and the movie does better with its [mostly repellent] human characters. Stephen Macht does a decent job of being the worst human ever. Not to be recommended lightly.
18. Fright Night (2011 remake): 8/10. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this. The cast is uniformly good and the story is engaging. Maaaybe drags on a bit towards the end. One of the more successful recent horror remakes.
19. Friday the 13th Part III (1982) [Rewatch]: 7.5/10. Probably my favorite entry in the Friday the 13th franchise. It takes time to develop its [still shallow] characters before killing them and features some of the best locations in the series. III also stands as the last of the series to avoid overly silly Jason lore. Part III has something special in the way of tone that other FT13th films lose more and more of at each outing.
20. Friday the 13th Part VIII, Jason Takes Manhattan (1989) [Rewatch]: 3/10. It's bad but it's fun! Then it gets worse. But the fun still pops up now and again. It's almost mind-boggling how a movie called Jason Takes Manhattan manages to spend the majority of its time on a cruise ship, but that's part of its beauty I suppose.
21. Jason X (2001): No.
22. Friday the 13th (2009 remake) [Rewatch]: 7/10. Not an amazing film, but an alright 2000s slasher remakes. Sort of like the Resident Evil REmake of the Friday the 13th series. It does a good job of handling a much larger cast than usual. Pacing-wise, this movie gets a lot right.
23. Child's Play (1988): 7/10. It's always fun to look back on horror movies that are considered classics within their own narrow field, and I'll admit that I enjoyed this for the most. But I'm quite certain that the Child's Play series just isn't for me. Chucky isn't remotely scary at his best, and I could never quite tell if that's how I was supposed to feel or not. The magic and witchdoctor stuff feels completely out of nowhere and I don't even what how to think about it. I wish i had seen it when I was younger.
24. Child's Play 2 (1990): 5/10. Like Child's Play, but with more comedy, less horror. I gather that's the general direction the series is perpetually heading in. Again, not a terrible film but not especially enjoyable to me.
25. Child's Play 3 (1991): 3/10. Triple the child, triple the play. You can't make me actually dislike a horror movie that feels as 90s as this, but man this one tested me. Especially in its abandonment of the semi-unique military school setting for a goddamn carnival. Fuck carnivals.
26. Dead Silence (2007): 7.5/10. I decided to check out some of James Wan's work post-Saw after having heard good things recently. I thought Saw 1 was just okay, and the rest of the series was pretty awful (though I know Wan didn't do much beyond the first) so I was somewhat biased against this director. Dead Silence seems to be considered one of his weakest films, but I thought it was pretty… good, actually. Cliched? Yes. Predictable ending? Sure. But everything beyond that was very well made and a good horror experience. Jason Stackhouse is more competent than I would have given him credit, and Donnie Wahlberg makes good use of the material he's given. But what this film really excels at is in establishing atmosphere. I don't like "Doll Horror," so the fact that this movie won me over is somewhat impressive.
27. Insidious (2010): 8/10. Another Wan film that I enjoyed. The director shows himself to be improving with every outing, which is a good sign for things to come. The third act loses a lot of the goodwill the movie has built up by displaying the antagonist entity in an almost comical manner, but the vast majority of the movie is effective and, by the end, regains its footing.
28. Nightmare on Elm Street (2011 remake): 5/10. I decided to finally watch this despite having never heard anything good about it. It wasn't as bad as I was expecting, but I can imagine a lot of people having left it disappointed. It feels like a movie that had the production values and enough talent to deliver a solid remake, but does nothing remotely inventive with the Nightmare on Elm Street approach to dream-based death. It would have gotten a 4/10 but Rooney Mara is pretty so whatever.
29. Scream (1996) [Rewatch]: 8.5/10. Yeah, it's still great. Every scene a nostalgia bomb.
30. The Last House on the Left (2009): 6/10. Can a movie with the lovable grandpa from Raising Hope and Jesse from Breaking Bad as sadistic villains really be taken seriously? It was hard at first, but I have to admit that I did enjoy this movie. I watched it on cable, and some violence was clearly edited out, but it still manages to develop a frightening scenario which builds to the [spoilers]reversal of fortunes[/spoilers] that is to come.
31. Fright Night (1984): 7.5/10 [Rewatch]: I hadn't seen this movie in a long time, but I had very good memories of it. I have to say, the reality wasn't quite up to those expectations even though I don't have any real criticism to level. It's still a fun 80s treat.
*Achievement Unlocked*
32. 976-Evil (1988): 5/10. Not particularly scary, but if I was still young it probably would have been considerably more disturbing than something like Fright Night. I only compare the two since I watched them consecutively, and since both prominently feature Stephen Geoffreys, who notably wouldn't be in much more for a while after this except for gay porn according to imdb. The movie actually drew me in despite being particularly cheesy in most respects. The tone makes a wild shift over the course of the runtime, from cheesy stageplay feeling to full on horror. It also directed me to this imdb forum post ( http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094597/board/thread/79749391 ) which I find hilarious, so there's that.
33. The Innkeepers (2011): 6/10. A slow, but fairly enjoyable film. Sara Paxton is supremely cute and does a capable job of keeping the movie alive. It fails in its third act, not because of its ending, but because after the initial breakout into more direct horror elements things start to fall apart fast.
34. Wishmaster 3 (2001): 1.5/10. I watched the first 2 entries in the Wishmaster series a few years back, and my memories of Wishmaster 1 in particular were quite positive. 2 was cheesier but still fun. Wishmaster 3 isn't going to leave a memorable impression of any kind. I don't even know if Andrew Divoff could have saved this film.
35. Wishmaster 4 (2002): I don't know, 0.5/10? Like Wishmaster 3, 4 isn't remarkable in any category. But also ten times as boring. At times I wondered if it was intended as a softcore porn movie, which would have probably made it more entertaining. As it is, all it did was make me wish the original had been On Demand as well so I could revisit it.
And on the agenda for tonight, the big night itself!:
The Fog (1980): One of the few Carpenter films I haven't seen. Been saving this for months. No idea what it's like going in.
Nightmare on Elm Street (1984): It seems almost criminal that I've never seen the original. Tonight I rectify this mistake.
The Conjuring (2013): I enjoyed Insidious enough to keep pursuing James Wan's filmography. I've heard very good things about this from some and claims of mediocrity from others. It will be my headline film of the marathon, so let's hope for the former.
Nightmare on Elm Street 3 (1987): If I have the time, I'll finish off the October marathon with this classic. From what I gather this is considered one of the better Elm Street films, and an appropriate closer for the night.
All in all it's been a fun month, and I've greatly enjoyed reading all the rest of you folks' reviews.
One of my faves overall from the 80's along with Beetlejuice. I stuck with the theatrical ending this time instead of the director's.
10/10
October 30:
31. Maniac (2013)
Watched this since it's been getting some buzz from this thread and I thought it was ok but definitely uncomfortable during certain gory scenes.
5/10
October 31
32. Halloween (1978)
Awesome 35th bluray edition that blows the old ass 2007 disc out of the water. This is the all time classic and a perfect way to finish the list but I'll probably sneak in another one or two before the night's over. We'll see how much time I've got.
1)The Blair Witch Project (Netflix, Mexico)
2)Halloween (remake, Netflix Canada)
3)The Crazies (Netflix, Canada)
4)The Collector (Netflix Canada)
5)Halloween 2 (remake, Netflix Canada)
6)Slugs (Netflix US)
7)The Collection (Netflix US)
8)Pumpkinhead (Netflix US)
9)Freddy vs Jason (Netflix Canada)
10)House at the End of the Street (Netflix US)
11)Would You Rather (Netflix Canada)
12)Wrong Turn (Netflix Sweden)
13)The Mist (Netflix Canada)
14)The Descent (Netflix Canada)
15)Dead Silence (Netflix Canada)
16)Pontypool (Netflix US)
17)Halloween 3: Season of the Witch (Netflix UK)
18)Apollo 18 (Netflix US)
19)Devil (Netflix US)
20)The Grudge (Netflix Sweden)
21)The Bay (Netflix US)
22)Hellbound: Hellraiser 2 (Netflix US)
23)VHS 2 (Netflix US)
24)Hellraiser 3: Hell on Earth (Netflix US)
25)Shaun of the Dead (Netflix Canada): First time seeing this, and I'm glad I did. Fun movie with lots of laughs. Really enjoyed this one.
9/10
26)Hellraiser: Bloodlines (Netflix Canada): Much better than the third one, but still not up to par with the first two movies. The demon designs are vastly better than the third one as well. The story is a bit much and tries to hard. Overall though, I liked it.
Trick 'r Treat (2007) - I came to this one courtesy of the first NeoGAF 31 Days of Horror October movie marathon thread, and it's found a permanent place in my annual Halloween rotation and in my heart . Old-school in it's sensibilities, filmed with restraint and charm, I think this is one of the best anthology horror movies ever, and absolutely worth a look if you've never seen it. And it fit my theme quite nicely, too...
October
Bad Moon (1996)
Werewolf: The Beast Among Us (2012)
I Was A Teenage Werewolf (1957)
The Beast Must Die (1974)
Werewolf of London (1935)
The Wolfman (2010)
Silver Bullet (1985)
Fury of the Wolfman (1970)
Never Cry Werewolf (2008)
The Wolf Man (1941)
Werewolves on Wheels (1971)
Werewolf Fever (2009)
The Undying Monster (1942)
Ginger Snaps (2001)
Ginger Snaps II: Unleashed (2004)
Ginger Snaps Back: The Beginning (2004)
Moon of the Wolf (1972)
Skinwalkers (2006)
The Company of Wolves (1984)
Werewolf in a Girl's Dormitory (1961)
Wolfen (1981)
The Werewolf (1956)
Blood and Chocolate (2007)
Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
The Howling (1981)
The Curse of the Werewolf (1961)
Kibakichi (2004)
An American Werewolf in London (1981)
Wolf (1994)
Dog Soldiers (2001)
Trick 'r Treat (2007)
And so ends another year... It's pouring rain here tonight, and I don't expect many trick 'r treaters on the streets tonight... I'll wait until 8:30 or so and pull out Carpenter's Halloween to finish off another October of GAF-inspired horror movie awesome. Happy Halloween!
Its the final day, and I am indulging myself. A Rob Zombie triple bill.
Film number 60: House of 1000 Corpses
A deranged, trippy, magnificent mess that introduced to the world one of cinemas most fucked up families. As funny as it is disturbing, and beautifully written, it spawned a sequel that is one of my favourite movies of all time
Film number 61: The Devils Rejects
If there was ever a film in with a chance of taking the top spot from The Thing in this months list, The Devils Rejects is it. The scuzzy poetry of the dialogue is even more appealing than in its predecessor, and the trippy, messed up visuals are beautifully toned down. There are great performances from Sid Haig, Leslie Easterbrook and the marvellous Bill Moseley, some awesome gore and a great deal of savagery. I bloody love it, from the insane search and destroy gunfight at the start to the
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
ending. Marvellous.
Film number 62: Halloween (2007)
Its got Mickey Dolenz in it. Thats why its better than Carpenters version. Plus I love all the back story and the cameos from Zombie regulars and everything. I like the original, and John Carpenter in general, very much. But this is my favourite version of Halloween, and its just finished, half an hour before midnight.
I cant believe how quickly this months gone, or how much fun it was. Really looking forward to next year. I do now have a lot of sleep to catch up on though
Trick 'r Treat is probably my favourite Halloween themed movie after Halloween (1978) and a perfect movie to end this marathon.
13 Days of Horror 2013:
1 Horror of Dracula (1958)
2 The Devil Rides Out (1968)
3 The Curse of Frankenstein (1957)
4 Dracula: Prince of Darkness (1966)
5 Tales from the Crypt (1972)
6 Dracula A.D. 1972 (1972)
7 An American Werewolf in London (1981)
8 The Conjuring (2013)
9 V/H/S/2 (2013)
10 Night of the Comet (1984)
11 Resolution (2012)
12 From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
13 Trick 'r Treat (2007)
I've had great fun this year. Too bad I had so many others things to do after the first half of the month which resulted with me skipping a few movies I was planning to watch. I guess I'll wait with them untill next year. Thanks alot for all the inputs you guys had in this thread, it's been interesting to read everyone's thoughts and follow their road to Halloween.
I really liked this one. I really enjoyed the all the lore and the story behind the way Mr. Boogie gets his victims. Basically this movie is full of jump scares, but I found the majority of them to be pretty effective. You always know they are coming, but they still get you. I liked this so much more than Insidious, and I think while the narrative might be weaker than The Conjuring, Sinister is still scarier. 7/10
#30 - Candyman
I wasn't really ready to give this one a fair shake when I put it on, but I thought it was great! I really liked that the Candyman was so well-spoken yet so brutally violent. His voice was also pretty creepy. The housing project setting was also something new and fresh. Virginia Madsen's character was a complete moron though. I didn't find this movie to be outright scary (I'm sure I would have if I had seen it when it first came out), but there is still a very effective unsettling quality to this film. 7/10
Man, I'm crazy impressed you managed to go to 31 with just werewolf movies. Before this month I would have said I could count the number of worthwhile werewolf flicks on one hand. Looks like I have some watching to do.
1)The Blair Witch Project (Netflix, Mexico)
2)Halloween (remake, Netflix Canada)
3)The Crazies (Netflix, Canada)
4)The Collector (Netflix Canada)
5)Halloween 2 (remake, Netflix Canada)
6)Slugs (Netflix US)
7)The Collection (Netflix US)
8)Pumpkinhead (Netflix US)
9)Freddy vs Jason (Netflix Canada)
10)House at the End of the Street (Netflix US)
11)Would You Rather (Netflix Canada)
12)Wrong Turn (Netflix Sweden)
13)The Mist (Netflix Canada)
14)The Descent (Netflix Canada)
15)Dead Silence (Netflix Canada)
16)Pontypool (Netflix US)
17)Halloween 3: Season of the Witch (Netflix UK)
18)Apollo 18 (Netflix US)
19)Devil (Netflix US)
20)The Grudge (Netflix Sweden)
21)The Bay (Netflix US)
22)Hellbound: Hellraiser 2 (Netflix US)
23)VHS 2 (Netflix US)
24)Hellraiser 3: Hell on Earth (Netflix US)
25)Shaun of the Dead (Netflix Canada)
26)Hellraiser: Bloodlines (Netflix Canada)
27)The Strangers (Netflix Canada): Great atmosphere and tension. Highly recommend it.
8.5/10
28)The Shrine (Netflix Canada): Love, love, love this movie. It has such a great buildup to the last 25 minutes when it goes balls to walls insane. Another movie with awesome atmosphere.
Man, I'm crazy impressed you managed to go to 31 with just werewolf movies. Before this month I would have said I could count the number of worthwhile werewolf flicks on one hand. Looks like I have some watching to do.
Well he watched lot of werewolf movies, but I wouldn't say many are actually worthwhile. Like zombie flicks, only a handful of the legions of them are any good.
Well he watched lot of werewolf movies, but I wouldn't say many are actually worthwhile. Like zombie flicks, only a handful of the legions of them are any good.
Oct. 1 The Evil Dead (1983) - Great
Oct. 2 V/H/S 2 - Good
Oct. 3 Blair Witch Project - Boring
Oct. 4 Sleepaway Camp - Great
Oct. 5 Drag Me To Hell- Boring
Oct. 6 The Possession - Great
Oct. 7 Session 9- Great
Oct. 8 Nightmare on Elm Street 2 - Boring
Oct. 9 [REC] - Great
Oct. 10 Evil Dead 2 - Fantastic
Oct. 11 Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil - Fantastic
Oct. 12 Ringu - Good
Oct. 13 V/H/S - Good
Oct. 14 Dawn of the Dead (2004) - Great
Oct. 15 The Cabin in the Woods - Great
Oct. 16 Maniac (2012) - Great
Oct. 17 Fright Night (1985) - Great
Oct. 18 [REC] 2 - Great
Oct. 19 The Mist - Great
Oct. 20 Pet Sematary - Good
Oct. 21 Magic Magic - What the fuck did I just watch?
Oct. 22 The Shrine - Great
Oct. 23 The Bay - Good
Oct. 24 Army of Darkness - Great
Oct. 25 [REC] 3 - Good
Oct. 26 House - Good
Oct. 27 Grave Encounters - Good
Oct. 28 Devil - Good
Oct. 29 Quarantine 2: Terminal - Boring
Oct. 30 Halloween - Fantastic
Oct. 31 Halloween 2 - Great
Happy Halloween Everybody! I don't think I've had as much fun participating in a thread than I did in this thread. Thank you everyone.
For an unnecessary sequel, Curse of the Cat People does right by going in a completely different direction from the original, and it often feels like a completely unrelated film, outside of the first film's three leads making a return. Focusing far less on the dark shadows of the city and more on the more suburban horrors of growing up a lonely kid, the film makes the most out of young Amy's bombardment of psychological damage, both intentionally so by her fellow peers, and unintentional as the result of her father Oliver, who might be repressing a bit more from his time with his first wife than he lets on. Once Amy gives a name and a face to her new friend, Simone Simon brings back her strong screen presence, but she's unquestionably a hero figure, and is never seen as anything other than radiant and pure. The film is certainly a lot less suspenseful as a result of it, but its focus on being more of a coming-of-age tale is warmly welcome. If it falters, the B-plot featuring a mother and her daughter that Amy meets early on feels too undercooked by the film's ending, though it does lead to a symbolically powerful climax that is hard to shake. That being said, it made the right decision to deviate so heavily from the original, and it pays off big time.
Another nasty little treat from Lewton, The Body Snatcher makes brilliant use of its period and its subject matter (the wake of the notorious West Port murders), and Karloff is certainly having a grand old time as our villain, who is prone to being just as destructive with his psychological mind games as he is with his hands, especially when it concerns Dr. MacFarlene and the dark secret that Karloff's character holds over him. The decidedly grayer moral quandaries that the characters sink deeper and deeper into make it hard to anyone a hero, but the film doesn't make the mistake of making them too repulsive, letting the various comeuppances and triumphs resonate like they're supposed to. And the violence is more suggestive than outright shown, but what is on the screen tends to be horrific enough in its mere implications, including a terrific scene where Karloff finds just what the doctor ordered. A word of warning, though: despite his second-billing, Lugosi is barely in the film, but let's just say that they couldn't have picked a more appropriate send-off for both of the horror icons time together if they tried even harder.
November 1 preview: Even if I'm the only loony still posting the next two days, then so be it! We conclude the Val Lewton mini-marathon with two more Karloff vehicles: The Isle of the Dead and Bedlam.
16. Halloween 6 (1995) [Rewatch]: 4/10. Paul Rudd, horror movie action hero? Is such a thing even possible? Maybe it shouldn't have been. Okay, it's not that bad, and Halloween 6 isn't embarrassing or anything, it's just more of the same. The ending is genuinely disturbing though. Not because of the film on its own but because it features the
rather pointless death of Dr. Loomis
followed immediately by a message stating RIP DONALD PLEASANCE. It just feels.. sad. If I had seen it in the theaters I might have felt offended.
1)The Blair Witch Project (Netflix, Mexico)
2)Halloween (remake, Netflix Canada)
3)The Crazies (Netflix, Canada)
4)The Collector (Netflix Canada)
5)Halloween 2 (remake, Netflix Canada)
6)Slugs (Netflix US)
7)The Collection (Netflix US)
8)Pumpkinhead (Netflix US)
9)Freddy vs Jason (Netflix Canada)
10)House at the End of the Street (Netflix US)
11)Would You Rather (Netflix Canada)
12)Wrong Turn (Netflix Sweden)
13)The Mist (Netflix Canada)
14)The Descent (Netflix Canada)
15)Dead Silence (Netflix Canada)
16)Pontypool (Netflix US)
17)Halloween 3: Season of the Witch (Netflix UK)
18)Apollo 18 (Netflix US)
19)Devil (Netflix US)
20)The Grudge (Netflix Sweden)
21)The Bay (Netflix US)
22)Hellbound: Hellraiser 2 (Netflix US)
23)VHS 2 (Netflix US)
24)Hellraiser 3: Hell on Earth (Netflix US)
25)Shaun of the Dead (Netflix Canada)
26)Hellraiser: Bloodlines (Netflix Canada)
27)The Strangers (Netflix Canada)
28)The Shrine (Netflix Canada):
29)Maniac (Netflix US): Like I mention above, the hype for this is well deserved. Twisted, great acting, gory, this movie has it all. Wood was fantastic is this. I loved the whole
POV
thing they had going on. Although, I didn't like when they broke away from that. Highly recommend this movie.
9.5/10
[REC] 3: Genesis (Netflix US): I went in with low expectations and walked away with a solid movie. Fans of the first two will probably dislike it since it is a departure from those movies. And I wouldn't be able to blame them. The lovey-dovey and god stuff were heavy handed for my liking. Good movie though.
7/10
Just a little past midnight. I will watch one more to finish up my 31 films.
A few short of finishing before October is over, but since I'm not working tomorrow I'm still going to try to finish the last five films. Not sure what most will be yet, but I want to fit in a few more foreign ones like Muoi and Strigoi that are I've been wanting to get to, plus I wanted to do Tenebre this time around after it being on my list last year. Nearly there.
Day 24: The Signal
A signal appears on tv and radio that makes people hallucinate and start killing people, and the main characters are trying to find their girl (one is her husband, the other the guy she's cheating with). This was surprisingly good, mixing horror and dark humor well with a neat narrative structure (3 parts, each with a different director and following a different character). Really enjoyed this one.
Day 25: Phantasm 2
This was laughably awful in that cheesy 80's way, but without the benefit of a fun character to keep you motivated (like Freddy). Neat story and villain, and some pretty dark things at times, but not great overall.
Day 26: Maniac
This was in my netflix queue already, but seeing the recent positive posts about it made me watch it tonight, and it was worth it. This was fantastic, a great unique way of filming it and Wood was really convincing as the maniac to me. I really enjoyed this one and definitely recommend it.
I made it, and with only 2 rewatches! A couple hours late, but I finished out this year with Carrie. The movie was great, especially, as you all know, the last 20 or 30 minutes or so. Legit creepy even after all this time. The score is also really good from the prom scene onward. Even though the effects at the prom scene are kind of dated, it's still a really awesome scene. The ending was also a little more no-holds-barred than I expected it to be, which was pretty cool. 7.5/10
Also wanted to give a shout out to ThirstyFly for putting this together, all the horror buffs for the great recommendations, and to everyone else who participated for making this such a fun event. I fucking love Halloween and horror movies so much, but where I am now, Halloween isn't really a big deal. But I had a kickass October and Halloween in large part because of this thread and all of you guys. I loved reading the write-ups and opinions almost as much as I enjoyed watching all these new movies. I'm already looking forward to next year!
1)The Blair Witch Project (Netflix, Mexico)
2)Halloween (remake, Netflix Canada)
3)The Crazies (Netflix, Canada)
4)The Collector (Netflix Canada)
5)Halloween 2 (remake, Netflix Canada)
6)Slugs (Netflix US)
7)The Collection (Netflix US)
8)Pumpkinhead (Netflix US)
9)Freddy vs Jason (Netflix Canada)
10)House at the End of the Street (Netflix US)
11)Would You Rather (Netflix Canada)
12)Wrong Turn (Netflix Sweden)
13)The Mist (Netflix Canada)
14)The Descent (Netflix Canada)
15)Dead Silence (Netflix Canada)
16)Pontypool (Netflix US)
17)Halloween 3: Season of the Witch (Netflix UK)
18)Apollo 18 (Netflix US)
19)Devil (Netflix US)
20)The Grudge (Netflix Sweden)
21)The Bay (Netflix US)
22)Hellbound: Hellraiser 2 (Netflix US)
23)VHS 2 (Netflix US)
24)Hellraiser 3: Hell on Earth (Netflix US)
25)Shaun of the Dead (Netflix Canada)
26)Hellraiser: Bloodlines (Netflix Canada)
27)The Strangers (Netflix Canada)
28)The Shrine (Netflix Canada):
29)Maniac (Netflix US)
30)[REC] 3: Genesis (Netflix US)
31)The Last Exorcism (Netflix US): The movie takes to long for anything to remotely happen. Even when it does, it is short. But the little scares there are, are good. If you are big on possession movies, then it is worth the watch.
6/10
Took a bit extra time, but I crossed the finish line. This was a blast. I watched a ton of movies I have never watch. As well as movies I haven't seen in ages. I don't think I have ever watch that many movies in any given time frame. My only regret would be I didn't throw in more older/classic films, but overal, I'm happy with the movie choices. Definitely doing this again next year.
This is a better poster than the more widely recognized one, but it's not as cool as this one.
Originally, I had The Poughkeepsie Tapes slotted in as the final film of the marathon, but this Grantland piece on one of the shorts in V/H/S/2, "Safe Haven," convinced me that I should watch V/H/S/2 this year, if for no other reason than it would provide fitting symmetry for this year's marathon, since I started with V/H/S.
Adam Wingard (You're Next) returned from the first film's group of directors, and he's joined by Simon Barrett (writer of You're Next and several segments on V/H/S and The ABCs of Death), Eduardo Sanchez (director of The Blair Witch Project, Lovely Molly), Gregg Hale (producer of The Blair Witch Project), Timo Tjahjanto (director of a segment on The ABCs of Death), Gareth Huw Evans (director of The Raid: Redemption) and Jason Eisener (director of Hobo with a Shotgun). The pedigree on V/H/S/2 is almost as good as the pedigree on V/H/S, which featured Wingard, Ti West, David Bruckner, Gleen McQuaid, Joe Swanberg, and Radio Silence, but V/H/S/2 was a much better experience than V/H/S.
One of my central complaints about V/H/S was that most of the characters felt like they emerged from a white dude-bro template. "Safe Haven," set in Indonesia, alone relieved that problem. But the protagonists in Barrett's framing narrative, Wingard's "Phase I Clinical Trials," Sanchez and Hale's "A Ride in the Park," and Eisener's "Slumber Party Alien Abduction" were of different ages and temperaments, which helped distinguish one segment from another. Even though the segments were still about 15-20 minutes long, there was at least a little character diversity.
The cinematography also felt more creative this time. I was impressed by Each segment felt internally consistent about how they used the first person perspective. You saw characters passing the camera back and forth in Barrett's framing device, and you saw them place the cameras in fixed positions. We see Wingard's "Phase I Clinical Trials" through the camera in the protagonist's ocular implant, and we saw the camera get obscured when it blinked. We saw the Go Pro cameras on the protagonist's bike helmet in Sanchez and Hale's "A Ride in the Park." We saw the news crew in "Safe Haven" check their cameras before infiltrating the Indonesian cult. And we see the camera get moved around, including getting strapped to a dog, in "Slumber Party Alien Abduction." The actual movements of the camera and the footage we see stood up to at least superficial scrutiny. Some of the elements, like why an ocular implant would also record sound or who edited the different footage captured by different cameras in "A Ride in the Park" or "Safe Haven" together, don't stand up as well. But they all felt like they used the first person footage conceit very well.
It also helped that there were fewer segments in V/H/S/2 (5, including the framing narrative) compared to V/H/S (6, including the framing narrative), which allowed them to stand out more. Frankly, the special effects in V/H/S/2 also felt better conceived and better executed. "Phase I Clinical Trials"borrowed some of the best elements from Paranormal Activity 3 (things appearing and disappearing as the camera's perspective turned, blankets being filled with nothing but air), while "Slumber Party Alien Abduction" took the scare of alien abduction from Fire in the Sky and Alien Abduction: Incident in Lake County and executed it wonderfully. The look and movement of the Grays and the appearance of the creature in "Safe Haven" also deserve praise.
I mentioned in the write-up for Fire in the Sky that I wished we had a horror film that felt epic in scope. Though "Safe Haven" is focused on a small group of reporters, the implications of what happens felt epic. Once the inciting incident takes place, the oppressive mood has exploded, and the threat to the protagonist has been made explicit thanks to some good special effects work, the action felt breathless. If anyone were to ever make a movie based on some of the more horrifying SCP Foundation entries, I'd want Tjahjanto and Evans to be near the top of the list. And "A Ride in the Park" is almost what I would have wanted from a movie based on World War Z.
As you would expect, the cinematography is shaky, particularly in "A Ride in the Park." But the aforementioned internal consistency heads some of my complaints about its shakiness off.
I expect that some of my problems with V/H/S came from overblown expectations, so I'm trying not to breathlessly praise V/H/S/2. But it is a much more enjoyable film, and it's one of my favorite films from this year's marathon.
Never heard of Overplay to be honest. I have heard and read of either free options or "full" VPN ones, but I like Unblock for its easy to use website. The customer service is great (although through email) and have never given me trouble. I don't mind shelling out $5 for it.
I had seen Candyman back when I was a teenager, I think when it first hit cable and haven't seen it since. I remembered it as one of the bloodiest movies I had ever seen so I was really interested in seeing how it fared after all the crazy stuff I've seen as an adult.
The movie is still great. From the pacing, to the score, to the cast, all fantastic stuff. Virginia Madsen was very impressive and of course Tony Todd is perfect casting. He's right up there with Robert Englund as Freddy and does his Candyman thing without a single bit of makeup or latex on his face. The kid playing Jake was really good too. "Can't fix that. Better off dead." Cold, man. Cold. I'd watch a whole movie about that character.
The plot is really interesting too. I love the location and thought they did a really good job of covering the issue of racism without beating you over the head with it. Maybe it's because I was a little distracted while watching, but I do think they could have explained things a tad better. I feel this is one that should be rewatched so that may help things.
I didn't really understand why the local residents had left Candyman an offering of
candy with razor blades in them
or why he's even called Candyman in the first place. I guess that was lost in translation from the short story.
And did the violence live up my memory? Not at all. there's plenty of blood and gore around, but it's mostly after the fact kind of stuff. I remembered the death of
the psychiatrist
being particularly nasty with blood EVERYWHERE but it didn't live up to that at all and seemed actually kind of tame now. I wonder if it has been edited down quietly over the years like a few other horror movies.
I was going to watch the sequels as well, but I couldn't squeeze them into the month. I'll watch them later after I take a short break from horror flicks to cleanse myself.
Highlights: Blood and Black Lace, House, Maniac and Curse of Chucky Disappointments: Fright Night 2: New Blood, the couple of gialli that didn't turn out to be horror at all Complete Crap: Nothing was really that bad this year, but World War Z was pretty close due to being such a waste of potential.
Thanks to everyone for participating. We blew past last year's number of replies and it grows every year. There's a lot of great reviews to go though and plenty of good films recommended. Can't wait for next year!
Well did get off earlier than I though and watched a few more films.
#36: Frankensteins Army
- Kinda dug it, had lot of promise but my biggest problem with it was the presentation. Lost footage like approach, ok that might have been nice if they had tried to make the footage look aged instead of pristine HD quality. The high quality digital video just made some of it look real amateurish and a bit corny on some of the monster designs. They didn't need to go all the way and make it look black and white and such, but perhaps some extra filtering to age it. What would have been perfect for the movie? Giving it a fake grindhouse 70's film look like they did with Planet Terror. That would have fit the film greatly. And for a film that is being done as lost footage, you have to attempt some authenticity with the camera angles, which were a bit too video game like in presentation. And also, why is everyone speaking english? If you were gonna have the main cast speaking english, then should have made them out to be US or British soldiers, not Russians.
#37: In the Mouth of Madness
- Not much to say, just a great all around film classic.
#38: Halloween (original)
- Didn't plan to rewatch but the girlfriend put it on in the background while we were chilling last night late, so yea was good way to end the horror marathon for the month.
I'm not sure where to start. This is a re-watch for me and honestly the movie seemed even more...unique(?) than I remembered. For those not familiar with Jess Franco's works, you don't really watch them for the plots. Honestly the plots are typically fairly weak. Vampyros Lesbos actually has a decent plot but it can be fairly difficult to follow at times. The plot can be convoluted at some parts, but overall I found it interesting. So what is the plot? Vampyros Lesbos is essentially a lesbian erotic version of Bram Stoker's Dracula (shut up, it works). Where the film really shines is visually and the soundtrack.
First, visually the film has a psychedelic art house feel to it. It's beautiful yet delirious at the same time. The psychedelic soundtrack only adds to this (I'll cover the soundtrack in more depth in a moment). But perhaps the most visually stunning aspect of the movie is Soledad Miranda. The movie is worth watching for this woman alone (not even kidding). Just look at her.
Okay, onto the soundtrack. The soundtrack in Vampyros Lesbos deviates from the usual jazz soundtracks you find in Franco's films and instead uses a more psychedelic music influenced soundtrack. The whole psychedelic influence works really well in horror, and music is no exception. I mean, listen to this shit, set to a horror movie it creates an unsettling and delirious experience. Seriously, click on the link and tell me that isn't great in a horror movie.
All in all, loved this film. If anything, it justifies a watching for Soleded Miranda alone.
Yeah I meant to watch a full 31 movies this month but the last week was a bust. Having Vampyros Lesbos as my final movie really worked out though as I think as it captures the essence of horror but doesn't linger on the genre overly much. It was a brisk ride into the vampire mythos and it didn't pull any punches. Including all the symbolism and darkness that's evident in some parts makes me think more horror movies need to go surreal like this feature did and worry less about plots and more about beauty. Having "hot" actresses doesn't really work when your film is just about exploiting them - the best parts of Vampyros Lesbos were where ambiguity took over and questions replaced dialogue.
That was a rambling way to say that I like stylish horror more than the formulaic Evil Dead type of stuff. I would have never realized until this marathon that that's how I feel about the subject, though, so that's a positive.
Having "hot" actresses doesn't really work when your film is just about exploiting them - the best parts of Vampyros Lesbos were where ambiguity took over and questions replaced dialogue.
On a related note: I, unfortunately, learned the other night that having an unattractive actress in a movie which focuses on atmosphere/style in the way Jess Franco's film doesn't work either.
I did a re-watch of Succubus. The atmosphere in the film was nearly as good the one we find in Vampyros Lesbos. The problem is, the lead female simply isn't beautiful enough to match the atmosphere. I don't want to come off as sounding shallow or superficial or anything, but it is almost distracting when a film is as beautiful as Succubus and Vampyros Lesbos yet stars an unattractive female (apparently I'm not alone here, Roger Ebert noted in his review of Succubus that "even the girl was ugly.")
If you took Soleded Miranda and threw her in Succubus...then you'd have a movie. So sad and unfortunate that she died so young in a tragic car accident.
Finally done with it, after being behind most of the month I did 3 yesterday and 5 today to cap it off.
Day 27: Pumpkinhead
This was pretty cool, I really liked how this played out. Some teens accidentally fatally injure a kid, so his dad gets a witch to summon the titular Pumpkinhead to take revenge. The thing was a beast, and while not amazing the film was definitely entertaining.
Day 28: Final Destination 5
I've always had a soft spot for these movies, and this was hit all the right notes for me. I go into these expecting clever deaths and that's what I got. I really liked the twist at the end too, was a nice way to dovetail the series together.
Day 29: Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight
This was a lot of fun. Cheesy in that TFTC way, but really good. Loved it, and hearing that intro for the first time in years was a treat.
Dead 30: Pumpkinhead 2
The first film at Lance Henrickson, and this one has Garak as a cop. Pumpkinhead is brought back to life by some stupid kids and immediately starts to kill people who had killed a kid decades decades ago, as well as attacking the kids who revived it, because why not. The monster felt more directionless because of this; rather than being summoned as a revenge monster, it was more indiscriminant which I didn't like. Overall it felt a bit weaker than the first one, though still fairly entertaining.
Day 31: Pet Sematary
Sometimes death is better, and what you bury in the pet sematary isn't what comes back up. It starts a bit slow and has a few unneeded tangents, but overall was really good.
My finished list for this year:
1 Dead Silence
2 Sadako
3 Hellraiser
4 Apollo 18
5 The Posession
6 The Corridor
7 Carrie (1976)
8 Evil Dead (2013)
9 Altered
10 White Noise
11 Jack Frost
12 ABCs of Death
13 In The Mouth of Madness
14 Wishcraft
15 Curse of Chucky
16 Rosemary's Baby
17 Poltergeist
18 The Bay
19 The Conjuring
20 The Hole
21 The Innkeepers
22 Night of the Living Dead (rifftrax live)
23 The House of the Devil
24 The Signal
25 Phantasm 2
26 Maniac
27 Pumpkinhead
28 Final Destination 5
29 Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight
30 Pumpkinhead 2: Blood Wings
31 Pet Sematary
Some great stuff this year, but it's getting tougher now since I've seen so many of the classics. Hopefully we get some good releases over the next year, since Curse of Chucky and The Conjuring were definitely some of the highlights for me this year.
Legends have a nasty way of dominating thoughts in times of great duress, as Isle of the Dead finds several strangers trapped on an island in the midst of a plague outbreak, with a few, including a weary but still potent Boris Karloff, believing that all their troubles will go away if he just gets enough time to wring pretty little Ellen Drew's neck to stop the curse of the vorvolaka, a kind of vampire. The film is definitely at its best when it focuses on the growing paranoia of the ones most believing of the old tales, and unfortunately much less so on the others, including a completely worthless and annoying ancillary character played by Jason Robards, Sr. and Marc Chamer's ineffectual leading man. The small setting is a big plus, as it does a good job of selling the despair of their predicament, while offering up its own haunting mysteries and locales, as is the musical score, complimenting the mood of the film quite brilliantly. I feel like it could have been a tighter film with a smaller cast of characters (and certainly better actors in some of those roles), but it's a solid film all the same.
The final film of Val Lewton's legendary run at RKO, Bedlam is perhaps the most ambitious production mounted by the producer. Faithfully recreating the setting of the latter part of 1700s England, both in terms of its visual look and its vernacular (definitely not a film to watch half asleep), the film tells the tale of a nasty, brutish caretaker of an asylum (Karloff, in one of his best roles) butting heads with a young, sassy protege of a prominent lord (Anna Lee, who does well with a character that's constantly having to overcome her innate prejudices), and the creepy titular building that unites both of them. Dripping wet with atmosphere, it leads to an almost claustrophobic sensation, which is the right kind of approach to take with the strongly written material. The morality play also works quite well, as both extremes (the careless decadence of the ruling class versus the ramshackle, deplorable conditions of the inmates) are treated as equally horrific. The movie does unfortunately rush events a bit to get to the finish line, which doesn't sell Anna Lee's gradual understanding of why the asylum inmates aren't as helpless as she once thought quite as effectively as it needed to, but a strong ending that offers up a well-earned Poe quote does much to alleviate that concern.
November 2 preview: It's Dia de los Muertos, and with it comes the conclusion of this year's marathon. First up, the independent horror classic Carnival of Souls promises a unique, surreal experience that influenced many filmmakers, including the likes of George Romero and David Lynch. And for the finale, we get around to what many hold as being the best haunted house film ever made: The Haunting.
Look at how many good films I saw compared to the bads! No wonder I had such a horrifying good time. Woohoo!
Thanks for participating everyone, I had a lot of fun reading all the reviews and thoughts and will get a lot of inspiration for next year from this thread. See you next year!
-This was actually my first time watching this, believe it or not. The cinematography & music were stellar but I have to admit that I wasn't overly impressed otherwise.
